


Five Went In. Four Came Out.

by CatLovesToWrite



Category: No Fandom, Non-Fandom - Fandom
Genre: Awkward Romance, Eventual Romance, F/M, Made up city, Made-Up World, Mystery, New World, No Fandom - Freeform, No Incest, Non Fandom - Freeform, Own Characters - Freeform, Protective, Protective Siblings, SIBLINGS ARE BEST FRIENDS OK, Slow Burn, Summer, Suspense, crime/suspense, new city, non-fandom, tw kidnapping
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-03-19
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:40:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23220346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatLovesToWrite/pseuds/CatLovesToWrite
Summary: Iva-Rose Callas and her four other siblings go into the woods behind their house to play hide and seek on a boring hot, summer day.Five siblings enter the woods. Four come out.
Relationships: OC X OC
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> THIS IS NONFANDOM. These are my own characters, and I'm trying a new medium, for helpful comments and (creative) criticism-- as none of my friends can/want to help with comments or criticism.
> 
> (Fanart or character design ideas are welcome as well.)
> 
> This is also a recently created idea inspired by my writing prompts. So apologies that this is a half-baked idea -- lmao!!
> 
> Many thanks for checking this out, XOXO CatLovesToWrite.

“One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine,” calls my youngest sibling, Sabine. 

Sweat prickles at my hairline as she yells excitedly, “TEN!” 

I take a silent deep breath and press myself harder into the big tree that blocks me from little Sabine's view. I don’t know why I suggested playing hide and seek in the woods behind our house. I’m the oldest of five, at 19, with my brother Reed bringing up the rear as second oldest at 18. Oren and Adalaide are thirteen and ten consecutively, and Sabine is six, the youngest of the bunch. 

But they all asked me to suggest a game, and since I had nothing better to do, (i.e do stupid chores that I don’t want to do) I suggested hide and seek out in the woods. 

But, now as I'm standing in the mossy undergrowth, trying to breathe normally as the sickly sweet smell of wet leaves and hot grass waft through my nose and coat my throat, I regret it. I shift to the side to see where Sabine went when she suddenly pops up in my vision. Her long brown hair has come undone from her ponytail already, and somehow already has twigs and leaves in it as well. 

"I foound you, Iva!" Sabine's slightly squeaky childlike voice exclaims and giggles. Sabine wraps her thin arms around my knees and lets go of my legs just as suddenly. "Now you have to help me find Ren, I think I saw--"

Sabine looks up at me with green doe eyes, as she realizes that she let it slip that she was totally cheating. The trees rustle above our heads, barely letting a breeze pass through, but makes the sunlight move softly, making a moving mosaic on the tree floor. 

I look at her, amused. "You were cheating, Bina?" 

"I only saw where you and Ren went. Not Reed or Ada." She tells me, trying to assure me, lip going into a pout. 

"But, Bina," I start, tugging my own brown hair out of my ponytail and shoving my hair into a messy bun. "If you were looking where we were going, that's cheating!" 

Bina looks at me, her brain trying to process what I just told her.

"Technically, we should restart the game since you cheated," I say, walking forward a bit, my eyes scanning the visible trees. 

"I don't want it restarted," Bina says stubbornly, her voice floating on whiny, slightly stomping behind me. 

I turn to look at her, an eyebrow raised, a stern expression crossing my face. When our parents are away selling stuff at the farmer's market, I am put in charge. We live pretty isolatedly, (our neighbours are three miles away) so sometimes mother and father stay a couple of days in the city, selling our wares and foods. On average, they stay four days, and usually, while they're in the city they get more supplies. 

"Sorry, Iva," Bina mumbles, looking down at her feet. Her flip flops are a dirty pink, and her blue daisy sundress is dirt-smudged. 

"Do you want to play an honest game, or a dishonest game, Bina?" I ask her, my arms crossing at my chest. Suddenly a cloud passes over the sun, and we're dipped in slight darkness, the shade making my bare arms stand up in goosebumps. I am only wearing a floral sundress suited for the summer. I stare up at the treetops, watching the sun filter in between the trees again. 

"Honest game, Iva," Bina says, bouncing back from my stern expression and tone. 

"GUYS!" I bellow, my usual soft voice being overtaken by the loudness, so suddenly, that Bina jumps and looks startled for a hot minute. "RESTART! BINA CHEATED!" 

I listen as my voice echoes throughout the trees. Silence rolls over us as the birds and everything else quiets down by my loud voice. 

A bead of sweat rolls down my back, and I huff. 

I hear twigs snapping, and I see Reed walking towards us looking flushed, his sweaty shortish brown hair pushed back and spiky. His white polo shirt is sweat-stained, dirty (and a bit green where I suppose some moss touched him) and half unbuttoned. His beige shorts are also suspiciously green stained, which makes me wonder if he took a fall. 

"Bean cheated?" Reed asks as he walks closer. I nod and look down at Bina, who has her arms crossed tightly, a big pout on her face. He quickly rubs her hair and turns to look at me with a gleam in his eye. 

"NO, Reed, don't even--" I start, but my refusal falls on deaf ears as Reed pulls me into a hug, pressing his sweaty body all over me. 

"Get off of me you heathen, you stink," I growl, pushing him off. 

"Good thing I know you love me, or else I would be pretty wounded right about now." Reed huffs, his deep voice he got from father, pitching slightly upwards as he gets sassy. 

"Bina, where did Oren get off to?" I ask her, eyebrow quirking. 

She points to the right of us before Oren comes rushing out of the trees like a bat out of hell, a big smile on his face. Oren chose to buzz cut his hair off a week ago, claiming he was 'tired of being overheated and suffocated.' 

"Why are you smiling, you hooligan?" I ask Oren as he almost breezes by us. 

"I won, didn't I?" He asks, a cocky smirk on his face. Oh my god, either we need to get this kid a hearing check or make him stop hanging around Reed as much. Reed is too self-assured for his own good. He's pretty popular in his class, and it really doesn't help his ego. I am thankful that our parents sent us to real school instead of homeschooling us. We're already kind of considered weird by having quote-unquote "hippie parents" in our county k-12 school, but the rumours would be worse if we didn't go at all. 

I got "cult-family" thrown in my face when I was in grade five, and it stuck with me until I graduated from that damned school. I graduated a year ago, and I'm considering going to college, but I'd miss the farm and my family lots. I'm perfectly content gardening and making handmade crafts. 

"Bean cheated, buttbreath, you didn't win anything! Plus, if anything, I would've won," Reed pokes Oren's chest. I shake my head as I realize Oren doesn't have his green t-shirt-- I'm guessing it's where he was hiding. 

"Where in the world is your shirt Oren?" I ask, feeling frazzled. Why hasn't Ada come out yet? She’s the wild card of the bunch. Sometimes she’s just as loud and obnoxious as the boys, and sometimes she is content being on her own, and quiet when she wants to be. Out of everyone though, she has the best singing voice, which she had gotten all on her own. Both mother and father are tone-deaf. 

"It's where I was hiding. I'll grab it later though," Oren says offhandedly as he starts to fight with Reed on who would actually win at a game of hide and seek. They start squabbling, and Reed slips Oren into a headlock and starts giving him noogies. Reed is easily 6'3, but Oren isn't that much shorter, standing at an easy 6'0, dwarfing mother, me, Sabine and Ada. They got our father's tall genes, and unfortunately, we got our mother's short genes. Though looking at Sabine, easily towering over the other kids in her grade, I can assume she’s graced by the tall genes too. Oren's arms are flailing but he's still standing tall and yelling that he would actually win at a game of hide and seek because 'he's shorter,' and 'he knows all the secret spots on our property!' 

I roll my eyes and start to feel icy dread slide down my back. 

"Reed, just so you know, you're fighting with a thirteen-year-old on who'll win at hide and seek, just so you know," I inform Reed dryly, my eyes scanning the trees. I stand on my tippy-toes, eyes straining to look in the dark parts of the farther away trees. 

"ADA!" I yell, stepping forward, a twig snapping under my flip-flop clad feet. A bird squawks in response to my yell, but no Ada is running through the trees, adding to the hijinks of the Callas clan. I turn to look at my other siblings, fear in my eyes, my mouth working, but no sounds are coming out of my mouth. The sweat on my body turns into a cold sweat, making me hyper-aware of where the fabric is sticking to my skin. 

"ADALAIDE CALLAS!" I yell, using her full name. More birds squawk at me, and Reed unhooks his arm from Oren's neck as they realize that something is very wrong. Bina looks curiously at us, terror thick in the air. 

"Where's Ada?" Bina asks, moving to stand in between me and Oren. 

Bina tugs on my limp hand as my ears start to buzz, and my mouth goes dry. I grip Sabine's hand tightly, and I exchange glances with Oren and Reed, who are frozen and silent waiting for Ada's sing-songy voice, or some kind of sound that Ada is coming towards us. 

_I clearly defined how far we could hide, right? Oh god, I can't remember-- oh god, oh god-- ___

____

____

"Reed," I start, voice wavering as panic crawls up my throat, almost choking me. "I want-"

"Oren and I will look for Ada, you go get help with Sabine. Don't worry, we will stick together. No splitting up like what dumb white people do in movies, I promise." Reed says, grabbing ahold of Oren's hand tightly. Oren nods and looks at me, looking pale and terrified. 

"I don't..." I start, shaking, and then holding Sabine's hand tighter. 

"You have to let us go look for her, Ada may not be far...but we don't want to put Sabine in danger, or leave her alone. You should head up to the Winton's and see if Alec and his dad are home. I promise if we get too far we'll turn around. We all know these woods to a certain point, and she probably just got disoriented." Reed says calmly. He shouldn't be calm in this situation; it should be me reassuring my younger siblings and putting on a brave face.

"You promise?" I ask, my voice breaking. "I don't want to lose any of you. Only go to a certain point, and if you don't...find her, you come right back to the house. If the Winton's are home, I will try to get them to come to our place to keep it as a headquarters. Stay safe boys. Stay close to each other and don't let go of each other's hand." 

Reed and Oren hug both me and Sabine tightly and then clasp hands again. They nod stoically at me and walk briskly into the trees.

I tighten my grip on Sabine's hand as I feel some tears drip down my face. 

"Do you want to go and see if the Winton's are home, Bina?" I ask, my voice wobbling.


	2. Chapter Two

To make us go faster, I pick up Sabine, my flip flops slapping my feet aggressively as I walk even faster, walking up on the Winton's driveway. Gravel keeps rolling under my feet, making me wince as I step.

My breaths are coming out in huffs, moving Sabine’s hair. 

I stop, my legs burning. I put Sabine down, and curl my hands on my knees, blowing a loose piece of hair out of my face. It’s 3 pm now, the broiling hot time of Raleigh County. 

I look and see Alec’s truck, but also a sleek, unfamiliar city car. Mr. Winton is not home. That’s unfortunate, but I can’t worry about that now. I haven’t interacted with / seen Alec since I was 17, on Christmas and the few days in between. I used to call him Xander, and he used to call me Rose. 

I grab Sabine’s hand, and I start fast walking to their front door, my legs protesting. 

I slam my fist on the screen door, with sudden urgency and panic. 

“Okay, okay I’m coming!” A rough male’s voice yells, coming closer. 

My eyes widen as I take in Alec. His light blue shirt is on inside out, and...he’s in navy blue boxer shorts. I quickly drag my eyes up to his face, which has somehow sharpened but filled out, his wide lopsided brown eyes stare back at me, and his shock of red hair is in a usual short men’s style. There’s a bit of stubble on his cheeks and well-formed chin. I try to pry my eyes away from the smattering of dark brown freckles that are across his slightly pointy nose and on his cheeks, a stark contrast against his pale skin. His uneven pink lips are slightly parted, and I can’t help but look at them quickly. 

“Ro - Iva, what’re you doing here?” Alec’s voice seems a lot rougher from when I was 17. He’s not a smoker — well I don’t know that now but Mr. Winton isn’t, and Alec seemed above smoking. 

My eyes start to trace his figure, trying to find familiarity in the unfamiliar. His shoulders are broader, and he is muscular but not so much that it’s obnoxious. It seems like he’s taller, but I don’t think he grew much in the years I haven’t seen him. 

“Ada—,” I start, my lips trembling. 

“Xannnndeeerrr, come back to bed, who’s there?” A whiny girl’s voice comes from behind him. I see her slender arms wrap lightly around Alec’s neck before I see her blonde head and baby blues peeking at me from beside Alec’s head. 

Her face drops, eyebrows furrowing. 

“Nessa, go back to bed…I’ll be there in a minute. She’s my neighbour.” Alec says, his eyes never straying from my face. I see ‘Nessa’s’ arms slide off of him, and see the side of her in only an oversized T-shirt walking by, and probably back to Alec’s room. 

“Iva!” Sabine stage whispers. “I hafta pee!” 

Alec opens the screen door and grins down at Sabine. “Hey, Bean, I haven’t seen you in a while, you’ve gotten taller!” 

“I’m six!” She says proudly, before doing the pee dance. I bite my lip, wiping away at the tears that have fallen, and shuffle her inside. 

“Second door on the right, down the hall,” Alec says, rubbing the back of his head. 

Sabine practically runs and slams the door. I wince and turn back to Alec. I open my mouth, but no words come out.

“Why are you here, Iva?” He asks, glancing down the hall, to his room with ‘Nessa.’ 

“Adalaide has gone missing,” I say, the words scraping my throat. “We were playing hide and seek in the woods and Bina cheated and Ada didn’t come when I called her back…” My lip starts trembling even more and I squish my lower lip tightly with my pointer finger and thumb. 

Both Alec and his dad are police officers in Raleigh County. 

“She’s not considered a missing person until twenty-four hours, Iva. She could’ve just got disoriented in the woods.” Alec says, his hand reaching out, and at the last minute missing my knee. 

“You and I both know all of us are well versed in those woods,” I say, my frustration spiking. The bathroom door opens and Sabine walks into the living room area calmly and hops onto my lap. I immediately hook my arms around her waist and shut my eyes tightly.

“Where are your parents Iva?” Alec asks, softly now. 

“Mom and dad are in the city!” Bina exclaims, squirming in my lap. I unhook my arms, and she sits beside me, staring up into Alec’s face. 

“Reed and Oren went to go look for Ada. I told them to meet back at the house—,” I open my eyes, and look at Alec too. 

‘Nessa’ walks out, her hair in a ponytail and I notice she’s now wearing casual summer clothes. ‘Nessa’ flops down next to Alec, and she hooks her hand in his. She stares at me, an un-inviting expression on her face. 

“Where’s Mr. Winton?” I ask, trying to drag my eyes away from Alec’s entangled fingers. 

“Dad’s working days, I’m working nights. We don’t work well together and the chief had to separate us.” He laughs slightly, and ‘Nessa’ laughs softly and leans into him. 

“Oh god, I’m sorry for being rude. Vanessa, this is Iva Callas. We more or less grew up with each other. I was her parents’ favourite child. When little Sabine showed up, Iva’s poor parents had six kids to deal with instead of five.” Alec hastily introduces us, and I shake Vanessa’s tentative hand. I don’t look her in the eyes, as I know she has the disgust and questions on the ready.

“You have four other siblings, Iva?” Vanessa tries to ask politely. 

I nod and swallow past the lump that is starting to grow in my throat, heavy with shame. We’re not a cult or some weird family — I want to tell her, but there’d be no use. 

“Will Reed and Ren be okay, Iva?” Sabine asks, tugging on my arm. I lift my head, and nod at her, my hand slightly ruffling her hair. 

“You were saying about how we needed to meet back at your house, Iva? Let me get some pants on, and Vanessa and I will meet you at my truck.” Alec says, dragging my attention back to him. 

I tug Sabine off the couch, gripping her hand tightly. She slides off the couch, and we head to the screen door. Just as I place my hand on the door handle, I hear Alec start talking.

“Iva, why didn’t you call 911?” He asks, breaking my heart. 

“I was frazzled. Reed told me to find you or Mr. Winton and I didn’t stop to think about calling 911. Plus, who else, despite Ada not being deemed missing twenty-four hours would still help find her or stay at my house than you or Mr. Winton?” I ask I think more tears falling down my face. 

I don’t face him, my hand is curled on his screen door handle. I know he can see me cry, though, because I can see his face, his eyes scanning my face in the reflection. 

—

Vanessa didn’t come with us. She and Alec were in the house for a few minutes, before Sabine and I watched her rush out, give me a scathing look, and hop into her sleek red city car and rush out of the driveway. 

Now, I sit in Alec’s truck, staring hard at the scenery, with Bina finally realizing something is wrong. 

We turn onto our driveway, way too fast. 

“Wait,” Alec says before I even reach for the handle. “You said Bean cheated and saw where you all went,” 

“I only saw where Ren and Iva went, Alec. Not Reed or Ada. Iva was silly and hid behind a big tree real close to me and Ren hid behind a couple of trees.” Bina says, pouting. 

I open his truck door and slide out, picking up Bina as she was sliding out and curling her in my arms. I’m so scared. I put her down, and she untangles her arms from mine. 

Reed comes running out of the house, his face tight with worry. He pauses when he sees Alec, recognition crossing his face — that’s right, he hasn’t seen Alec since he was 16. 

“So you were home, thank god,” Reed says, running towards us. He surprises me as he gives Alec a tight hug, relief painting across his face. I blink, forgetting, despite our ages, we are still children — even compared to Alec Winton. 

“Go on up to the house, Bina. I’m sure you could bother Oren with requests for supper.” I lean down to talk to her, worried that I would disrupt the moment. 

“Will Ada be there?” She asks quietly. I look up at Alec and Reed, Reed still tightly holding Alec. 

Oh no, I think as I see tears pooling on Alec’s light blue shirt— (now right side in) Reed and Oren did not find Ada. 

“It’s okay Reed, we’re gonna find her,” Alec says, rubbing Reed’s back, slowly rocking him. 

“I don’t think so. I’ll come with you,” I say, my heartbreaking in five ways. 

—

The silence is suffocating. I sit at the head of the table, my fork scooping up some mac and cheese and putting the food in my mouth. Alec sits to the right of me, looking heartbroken and Oren sits across from him, staring at his food. Reed is pushing his food around on his plate on the right side, and across Reed, Sabine sits, playing with her food too. I can’t bear to look at Reed’s side. Adalaide always sat beside Reed when I take over my mother’s spot. 

“We will find her, you guys.” I break the silence with empty hope. How could she just disappear like that? 

“When will your parents be back?” Alec asks.

“Three days,” Reed mutters, rubbing at his cheeks. “Mother and father don’t have cell-phones, nor do we. We have a spotty landline and they try not to stay in the same place to ‘experience culture.’” Reed rolls his eyes. 

I scrape my chair back, still, a half plate of food left. “I’m going to go to bed.” 

I walk numbly over to the kitchen and mechanically place the uneaten food back in their respective places, before placing my dishes in the sink. 

“Iva.” Alec’s voice startles me, and I turn around to see him slumped on one of the kitchen counters, a small fringe drooping into his eyes. 

“Alec,” I respond. 

“We’re gonna find Ada, I promise you. She could not have gone far.” He says, looking up at me, an intensity in his eyes I’ve only seen when I was 17. 

_“You wanna do what with me?” Xander demands quietly, lifting me from his lap and depositing me onto the couch next to him. ___

____

____

_“Lose my virginity to you,” I say quietly, my cheeks flushed and warm. I cross my arms and stare into the popping fire, my head feeling slightly floaty. I curl my fingers into my plaid sleep shirt. Reed, Oren and Ada are passed out on the floor, sleeping bags crinkling._

____

____

_“That’s …” Xander starts. I drag my gaze back to him. His hair gleams in the fire, and I have a sudden urge to touch it. So I do._

____

____

_Xander grips my wrist, staring intently into my eyes, making me feel shivery._

____

____

_“A great idea, I know.” I finish his sentence for him, slowly inching towards him._

____

____

_“Rose, how much did you have to drink?” Xander asks, allowing me to crawl back onto his lap, my legs straddling his. I shake my wrist out of his grip and start to trace his freckles. He closes his eyes, his eyelashes a pretty rust colour. ___

____

____

_“Just a few sips off of mother’s cooler,” I whisper into his ear. Xander shivers, and lets a quiet breath out, before opening his eyes and looking at me._

____

____

_“Why me, Rose?” He asks. ___

____

____

_“I trust you, Xander Winton.” ___

____

____

“Are you okay Iva?” An older Alec replaces younger Alec from my memories, looking concerned. 

I smile faintly at him. “I’m fine. I just need some sleep. Could you try to get one of those guys to put away the food and wash the dishes?” I ask, putting a hand on his shoulder, and letting it slowly drag off as I walk by. 

After I lost my virginity to Xander Winton, he told me that he regretted doing that to me, and asked if I could call him “Alec,” instead of “Xander.” It broke my heart, and I shoved my pyjamas back on, embarrassed, and crawled into my sleeping bag, in the middle of my siblings. He didn’t stop me from leaving. After that Christmas, Alec made excuses and always avoided interacting with us. We only ever saw Mr. Winton after that, and he never talked about Alec to us. That broke my heart even more because I ruined everything, and I couldn’t even tell anyone why. 

I trusted him because I always had a crush on him. I trusted him because I saw how he handled himself. I trusted him because I … had no one else that remotely liked me outside my family. All the guys in my class thought that I was a part of a cult or a weird family and one said to my face once, “I wouldn’t want to get dragged into your weird family and have them eat my organs.” I thought Alec would’ve handled my virginity like he handled everything else; calmly and with a cool head. 

Except, when I woke up that morning, it wasn’t in Alec’s bed, with both my heart and places I didn’t know would hurt, hurt.

“I’ll stay here as long as I can, and I’ll call dad and inform him about the situation,” Alec calls after me. I bob my head and open the door to our wide bedroom. 

—

Xander Winton walks into the precinct, with the weight of the world on his shoulders. 

The captain is in her room, looking through files, and Xander looks at his partner, Fisher de Luc, who’s also going through files. 

“What’s going on?” Xander asks, trying to blink back the sleep that’s starting to creep behind his eyeballs. He and Vanessa were just sleeping when Iva and Sabine burst through his house. 

“Seems like there’s a serial kidnapper in Raleigh County. Ten-year-old girls…no bodies have shown up yet. Four have gotten taken already, the recent, Anna Debríe just turned ten when she was kidnapped from her own birthday party, like a week ago,” Fisher sighs, tossing a file onto Xander’s desk as he sits down.

“Why wasn’t I told about this earlier?” Xander asks, his fingers frozen, tracing the smiling, gap-toothed smile of Anna Debríe. 

“The homicide guys just handed this case over to us, as there are no bodies yet. Are you okay Winton?” Fisher asks, noticing Xander’s weird behaviour.

“There’s going to be a fifth girl,” Xander says numbly. 

“What do you mean by that? How do you know that?” Fisher asks with suspicion. 

Xander looks up at the suspicious tone, heartbroken. “I know, because my neighbour’s sister Adalaide Callas, who’s ten years old, didn’t come back after she was called back from hide and seek in the woods. Her eldest sister, Iva didn’t call it in, because it hasn’t been twenty-four hours yet.” 

Fisher sags, and his black fringe hangs as he looks down. “Do you have the girl’s picture to put on the board?” He asks, motioning to “The Board” of smiling ten-year-old girls without even looking up.

Xander pulls out a picture of Adalaide from his pants pocket, who looks serious compared to the other girls. Her long brown hair that all the Callas kids have is in tight braids against her head, coming to rest down in front of her shoulders. She looks smaller than the other girls too: very lithe, like Rose — Iva. Big green doe eyes peer out in a curious manner as she looks at a medal being handed to her. Her slightly pointed chin that all the Callas children also have (inherited by Mrs. Callas) pointed up. She could almost be a mini-me of Iva, save for a few features, like a mole on Adalaide’s upper lip area, and her eyes are a bit more rounded than Iva’s. 

“She’s the voice in the family,” Xander mutters, staring down at the picture in the palm of his hand. 

“Huh?” Fisher asks, looking haggard all of a sudden. Xander looks up. 

“Adalaide…she’s the only one who can sing. It’s angelic. The rest of her siblings can’t sing for shit,” Xander has a small smile on his lips now, remembering Adalaide’s little performance at a barbecue a LONG time ago. “As well as their parents. Tone-deaf, except for sweet little Ada.” 

“How many kids are in that family?” Fisher asks, coming to look at the photo that’s laying gently in Xander’s palm. 

“Four others. Oren, another middle child is thirteen. Reed is the second oldest at eighteen, Iva-Rose is the oldest at nineteen, and Sabine is the youngest at six.” Xander reports, placing the photo on his desk. “We shouldn’t put her picture up just yet. Dad might find her, she could’ve fallen somewhere.” Xander says.

_It’d make it real if Ada was on The Board._

____

____

—

I wake up, staring at the bunk bed bars above me. Sabine is sleeping soundly, her teddy bear, Clementine tucked under her arm tightly. I turn to my left side and see Reed splayed out, mouth open and drooling. Oren is curled into a ball, and Ada’s cot is empty under the high window. 

I blink, and slide out of my bed, while I grab a fluffy and ratty pink robe as I go. 

“Are you going to have sex with Xander again?” Reed’s sleepy voice asks, his eyes blinking at me slowly. 

I make a face at him, my body freezing up. “What do you mean by that, Reed Callas?” I demand quietly. 

“I heard you guys on that Christmas, and then he never spoke to us again. So...please don’t, he’ll leave us alone again and we need his and Mr. Winton’s help with Ada.” Reed says, his eyes blinking even slower now. 

“I…I’m your older sister, Reed. What I do is none of your business, and he won’t leave us again. Go back to sleep, Reed. Wipe that drool off your face.” I hiss quietly, my face becoming blotchy and red. 

I stand and open our bedroom door, and walk out of it in a huff. I close it tightly and softly and walk down the hall where I see Mr. Winton is not on our couch. Right, he’s out in the dark looking for Adalaide. 

I pull my robe tighter against my body as I stare hard at the woods that ate my sister. I should be out there too. She’s my sister, my responsibility.

I slip on my flip flops which don’t look that great with blue pyjama shorts and shirt and a ratty robe —but I can’t worry about that now. 

I slide open the sliding door and step out onto the porch and shiver. I was not expecting it to be this cold. I shake off the shivers and head towards the woods, hopping off the last step and trying to casually walk. 

I break into an all-out run, unable to control myself any longer. I wrap my arms around myself, my hair flying and tangling behind me. “Adalaide!” I scream as I enter the entrance to the wooded area, the trees rustling softly with the wind. 

“ADA! Come out now! Hide and Seek is over! If you come out now you won’t get in trouble,” I say to the stoic and silent trees. I turn around, and yell, “ADALAIDE!” 

I try to take a deep breath, but my breath gets caught as tears start flowing down my face. 

“Addy!” I say, shivering, curling my toes under, hoping to collect some warmth. I walk forward, deeper into the woods as I see a flashlight bobbing towards me.

I open my mouth to scream, but I see Mr. Winton’s tired and confused face. 

“Iva, what’re you doing out here, go back inside, go back to sleep!” He exclaims, the flashlight beam pointed down.

“She’s my sister and responsibility, and you should be sleeping and resting for your shift!” I tell him, my tears cold on my face, throat raw. 

“Adalaide is first priority,” Mr. Winton says solemnly. 

“I’m not moving until I will be allowed to help,” I say, my teeth chattering. 

Mr. Winton pulls out his phone and calls someone, and turns away from me, and even walks a bit away so I can’t even hear his conversation. He nods, glances at me, and goes back to talking, his hand moving with his speech. 

Mr. Winton pulls the phone away from his ear and presumably ends the call, and saunters back towards me. “Then I guess you and I will wait until either of us cracks.” He says smugly. 

“Or I could just step around you, Mr. Winton and look for my sister.” I point out, moving to go around him, but the wind picks up, chilling me. It’s only 0 celsius but compared to the plus 35 weather during the day, it’s cold. 

“Cold, Iva-Rose?” Mr. Winton asks, raising an eyebrow. 

“No.” I pout, looking behind him. “Isn’t this just wasting time looking for Adalaide?” 

“It is, so I’d appreciate it if you’d go back to bed and let me help.” Mr. Winton acknowledges and nods back at the house. 

“I can’t just do that Mr. Winton…I want to help,” I say, curling my arms tighter around me. 

“And I can’t just let you do that. Technically you’re a civilian, a well-meaning one, but still a civilian.” Mr. Winton argues back, making me pout even more. “I know she’s your sister. But we have to…detach ourselves from the equation, or else we’ll get sloppy, and that means no upset sisters.” He points out, as the swirling wind blows through my hair and freezes my face. 

I hear footsteps behind me, and see a troubled Alec running up with an unknown guy following behind him. I turn and make a face at Mr. Winton. 

He just shrugs and starts making his way back into the woods. “Thanks, Xander,” he throws over his shoulder. 

Alec’s fingers curl around my arms, his body basically looming over me. “Shit, you’re freezing! Let’s get you warmed up, alright?”

I nod weakly and allow Alec to lead me back, the unknown, black-haired guy beside him silent. 

“Fisher, do you mind not telling the Captain about this?” Alec asks, warm fingers pressing into the thin fabric of my robe as we get to the steps of my porch. I hang my head, body shivering. 

“‘Course not,” Fisher, I suppose, replies in a husky voice. Alec slides open my door and slightly shoves me inside. Fisher follows and closes our door. 

“What the fuck were you thinking, Iva?” Alec demands, a little too loud. I look down at my flip flops, the warmth of the house wrapping around me.

“I wasn’t,” I mutter, kicking off my flip flops and walk towards the living room, exiting the kitchen, leaving both Alec and Fisher behind. 

I gingerly sit on the worn couch, before scooting back and curling my legs under my body, and flaring out my robe. 

Alec comes storming in behind me, Fisher in tow, looking awkward. “That’s right, you weren’t!” He hisses.

“My siblings are sleeping, so would you mind being quiet?” I ask, blinking at Alec’s angry words, the only acknowledgement I’ll give them.

“You could’ve gotten lost too,” Alec says, sitting down on a couch across from mine. Fisher hovers awkwardly before I motion for him to sit. 

“I know these woods,” I say, my eyebrows furrowing. 

“So did Adalaide,” Alec says, before paling and looking away. 

“Does,” I say, as more tears start flooding my system. “Adalaide does know these woods.” 

—

The next day, I made the call. Alec told me to use his cellphone when I was ready. 

“911, what’s your emergency?” A stern sounding woman’s voice comes through the phone. I look down at my lap, my left-hand curling into my ratty robe and swallow against my tears.

“My little sister, Adalaide Callas—,” I start, looking at Alec beside me. Fisher and Mr. Winton left at dawn, reassuring me that they’ll find Ada. Mr. Winton took over the rest of Alec’s shift.

“Is this Iva-Rose Callas?” The voice asks, suddenly softer. “We got the heads up from Jack Winton. Thank you for calling, an officer will be en route to take your eye witness accounts.” The call ends, and I place Alec’s phone on the worn end table and look down. 

Alec is sleeping on the couch awkwardly, legs hanging off the arm, slightly curled within himself, his head so close to my left hip, I don’t know what to do with my hands. 

I sat here, watching Alec slowly drift off to sleep and I didn’t even get him a blanket. I don’t think I slept, but if I did, I don’t remember it. 

My eyes feel gritty, and I want to cup Alec’s face and make him tell me it’s going to be alright, but it’s unfair to make him do that. He’s not mine, nor, was he ever mine in the first place. 

The door to our bedroom opens, and I see a groggy Reed stumble out.

His eyes widen when he sees me and his lips start to quiver. “Iva-,” 

I stand up, careful not to wake Alec and I walk over to my brother and pull him into a tight hug. 

“I’m so sorry, Iva,” Reed says into my shoulder, tears soaking my robe. I squeeze him tighter and sigh. 

“It’s okay Reedy, I…know you didn’t mean it. I’ll make breakfast in a bit. You should go back to sleep…” I pull away from Reed, scanning his sleep mussed hair, and bleary eyes. 

“You should sleep Iva. I’m sure you didn’t have a wink of sleep.” Reed says, unhooking his arms, and looking sideways at Alec. 

“It’s okay—,” I start, rubbing my eyes. It feels so good to close them…

“I’ll wake you guys in a bit, I’m certain Oren and Sabine need the sleep as well.” Reed brushes me off, and I open my eyes to see him sit beside Alec. The change in weight jolts Alec, and he almost slips off the couch in his jolt. 

Alec sits up, his legs still dangling off the couch, the imprint of our couch smushed into his face.

“Rose?” He asks blearily. 

“I…” I start, the tears I’ve been fighting back hitting me full force. I turn, and I walk towards our door and open it lightly. 

I crawl into my bed, and curl into myself, tears stinging my dry eyes. 

—

Reed stares ruefully at Alec as he watches realization cross Alec’s face. Alec looks suddenly sick to his stomach, and he slowly runs his fingers through his short red hair. 

“I didn't mean…” Alec mumbles, suddenly sliding back and sitting normally. He glances at Reed who’s gone silent. Reed’s face is a mix of displeasure and unthinkable sadness. 

“If you didn’t mean it, Alec, you shouldn’t have said it.” Reed comments, fingers flexing. 

“I slipped up,” Alec pointedly says, cracking his back. He shouldn’t have fallen asleep, and instead should’ve forced Iva to sleep. She needs it more than him. 

“A slip up that may break Iva’s heart more than it already is.” Reed comments. 

Alec pales and looks away. Iva told Reed what they did all those years ago? “She told you?” 

“No. Unfortunately, I was awake because I was thirsty.” Reed says, his face curling in disgust. 

“I was embarrassed. I took advantage of Iva when she was tipsy. As well, I am two years her senior, I should’ve known better. The thought of facing your parents after that made me a coward.” The usual feeling of absolute dread and guilt starts to form at the bottom of his stomach whenever he thinks of that night. Which is often, and sometimes … in a not welcomed way; he still remembers how soft her skin was—

Reed scoffs, breaking the dangerous path Alec’s brain was going down. 

“You broke her heart and ours. Me, Oren and … Ada's…we never knew why you abandoned us. Mother and father told us it’s because you got older and no longer wanted to be around us. Said that it was most likely our last Christmas and stuff with you.” Reed shrugs, his body turned away from Alec. 

Reed wants to tell Alec the hug that he gave him yesterday meant nothing just to hurt him, but he can’t bring himself to say so. It was packed full of relief that there was an adult that could finally help, and happiness that Alec was back and he didn’t hate the family. 

Not that Iva isn’t helpful; she’s the best big sister anyone could ever ask for. She’s more of a mother to Sabine than their own mother. Iva took their mother’s words to heart, that the oldest should mind the younger ones, and that unfortunately gave their parents more freedom to …not be parents. But, Iva is only a year older than Reed, and she’s not a county police officer. 

Reed looks back at Alec, who has gone silent, his lips pursed into a straight line. Reed knows what’s going to happen when their parents get home. Iva is going to get blamed, no matter how much Reed or Oren or Sabine will protest. Their parents are more like housemates than anything. The only time they truly feel like a family is when they all do arts and crafts together to sell at the farmer's markets in the city. 

“I even noticed when she said your name, ‘Alec,’ instead of ‘Xander,’ that things had changed between you guys. You kicked her out of your bed. You didn’t even let her stay with you…you couldn’t even give her that?” Reed asks. 

Things are different for Reed at the county school than Iva’s experience. He looks and seems popular, different from Iva, who kept to herself, and who was always withdrawn. She didn’t wear cult-like clothing, but she gave off the cult vibes. It’s still unfair, definitely. 

Reed has had at least five girlfriends during his high school career and is definitely _not shy _in that area. But, he’s single now, and only one girl has snared his heart: Autumn Berk. She just moved to Raleigh County and lives 5 miles away from their house. She’s in his grade, but Autumn kept to herself the whole grade 11 year.__

____

____

“I couldn’t even face myself in the mirror, afterwards, how was I supposed to face any member of your family?” Alec demands, bringing Reed’s attention back to him. 

“You were always the levelheaded one, Alec, I’m sure you would’ve figured it out,” Reed says, standing up from the couch. “I gotta start breakfast.” 

Sharp knocks sound at the door, and Reed looks at the door. 

“Iva must’ve called. That’s a police officer to take your eyewitness statements.” Alec says dryly, an unreadable expression on his face. “I’ll start breakfast.” 

Alec stands and walks into the kitchen.


End file.
